


Divine Punishment

by spacesix



Category: Hades (Video Game 2018)
Genre: Abusive Parents, Hades is kind of a shit dad and not in the meme-able way he was in game, Non-Graphic Violence, Protective Parents, Temporary Character Death, protective is in quotation marks there, see prior tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2020-10-14
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:54:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27004639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spacesix/pseuds/spacesix
Summary: Lord Hades is getting tired of his son's constant attempts to escape, and even more so of the boys friends not stopping him and bringing him home like they were tasked with doing.There are reasons for Zagreus being kept here against his will.
Relationships: Megaera/Zagreus (implied), Thanatos/Zagreus (implied)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 131





	Divine Punishment

It wasn’t often there was ever a scene at the house. It was one of the neutral grounds – isolated enough from the rest of the underworld through fairly strict order and control of the master, both when he was present and when he was away on other duties.

Saying there was _never_ a scene, though, was like saying that Lord Hades _always_ kept his temper.

This was just… a particularly harsh one to witness.

But witness, Achilles did. It would feel needlessly selfish to avert his eyes to his pupil’s punishment, especially since he had personally been the one to prepare him for what landed him here in the first place.

It was brutal and cruel to say the least what the boy and his friends were faced with.

It felt like eons ago that Megaera and Thanatos had been summoned form their duties to the palace foyer; since Hypnos had appeared at his side with a decidedly uneasy smile and a not-quite-request for his assistance in catching up on paperwork; since he’d agreed under suspicion and followed the small gathering, only to see the Lord pull his son from the Styx by the hair and grant him barely enough time to look confused before slaying him in one movement of his blade like he was nothing.

Lord Hades was in a rage – one of his quiet, seething spells that not even Persephone herself had been able to pull him out of as much as help him regain control for another moments’ peace.

And Achilles knew why.

He knew that it was because of him.

He knew that Zagreus was likely to have by now attempted his escape a hundred or so times, renewed in frequency and vigor by the subtle praises and stories of Patroclus he’d let slip whenever the boy would bring back a new tale about a new monster and a new location he’d stumbled into on his journey.

“Again.” Hades’ command snapped him from his thoughts, and he re-focused on the scene before him with a steadying breath.

It felt like eons ago that Meg and Than had begun this “training” under his guidance, of how to kill Zagreus with their hands and their tools and their powers, of how to not feel anything for the one who was under their hands and whose blood – red as mortals’ – stained the tile and drained to the river as more and more was spilled.

“Again.”

They were slowing. Their movements were more precise than ever – not an edge of sloppiness present that would cause anything but an efficient death to the god they had called their fiend and family and lover. But they were tired, and numb, and it showed in their entire bodies.

“Again.”

Zagreus was slowing, too; taking longer and longer to disappear and to reform and to resurface from the waters and to haul himself up the stairs. He want even bothering to keep up the façade of a fight he’d put up at the beginning of his torture. He hadn’t found it in himself to flinch anymore after Hades had turned away from demonstration and set the other two on him instead.

“Again.”

He didn’t think Hypnos had ever been as laser-focused on his tasks as he was today.

“Again.”

He didn’t think any of them would be able to keep that word from echoing through their minds every time they saw Zagreus from here on out.

The quiet of the room was tangible as they waited for Zagreus to come back again, for the next order to be delivered with the same apathetic monotone.

It never did. They were all too exhausted to continue.

Hades’ rage had abated for the time being.

“Zagreus is never to leave the underworld for good reason.” The god’s voice was level when he spoke up at last. “We are gods. Killing each other is part of our lot, and it pains him to bear that duty no more than it does any of us.”

No one moved a muscle as the Lord leveled them individually with an assessing stare, lingering on Achilles matched one as if challenging him to speak.

They all knew better than to even try.

“Keep with you that I take no pleasure in it either. It is simply our duty that he be kept here, under control and away from the reach of others. You are dismissed.”

Achilles stood a moment longer, watching the others take their understandably hasty leave and Lord Hades return to his throne to resume work before making his way closer to the mouth of the river.

He placed a hand on Hypnos’ shoulder in passing, barely touching, but enough to make the tense god jump and the white-knuckled grip he had on the quill drag a harsh line down the parchment. He opened his mouth to say something, but shut it again when the other simply took a breath and reset himself to work, clearly wanting to be left to the distraction of his chore.

Achilles hated that he understood, that he’d been privy to enough though his time among all the palace residents to understand their motivations, and to play into them himself. That Zagreus had trusted his encouragement of his behavior despite knowing it would never be allowed to be a possibility, that Hypnos now and likely Megaera and Thanatos had trusted that he had attended this in order to put a stop to Hades’ outburst.

He folded himself down next to the stairs to await Zagreus’ eventual return.

Whatever the boy would be put through down here, he would face it a thousand fold at the hands of the Olympians should they discover that a god of rebirth had been allowed to influence and wreak havoc upon the order of the mortal world.

**Author's Note:**

> I just wrote this out in like an hour to get it off the brain, so I apologize for any glaring errors or inconsistencies. I might come back to this formally once I have time.  
> Any comments or criticisms/corrections are more than welcome.


End file.
